** Due to being a snub fighter, the Merlin does not have intakes. As
such, it does not replenish fuel while flying. In the PU, it would do
this by docking with a Constellation

Accounts that have constellation variants that come with a snub

fighter will be given a Merlin loaner ship to use in Arena Commander

Like other loaner ships, loaner Merlin’s cannot be placed in the hangar

Placing a Constellation Andromeda in the hangar will also spawn a Merlin

Components
* Added support for spray patterns to weapons based on weapon mount type

Added new attenuation for missiles explosions

Added weapon names to Vanduul armaments

Added blade extension for captured Vanduul Scythe. It is activated by turning the item on in the weapon UI

Human engineers have increased the weapon lethality for the ship for the captured version of the scythe

User Interface
* Added a HUD effect to the Vanduul Scythe where the alien ship HUD will appear in some situations

Electronic Access button has replaced the Arena Commander button

in the main menu to help with indicating that Arena Commander and Star
Marine and simulations within the game fiction

Arena Commander and Star Marine icons have been added for each game module

Game module icons will be grayed out for accounts that do not have access to them (Star Marine is grayed out for all accounts)

Game modes and maps will have a red overlay for accounts that are invited to lobbies which contain game modes they can’t play

Lobby host will receive an error if a player in a lobby doesn’t have access to the selected game mode

Match ID’s have been put back into the game to make it easier for players to report issues with specific instances

Match ID length and complexity has been increased to ensure that they’re always unique

Environment
* Transitioned the audio system for all game content over to new cross-platform sound engine

Added additional ambiance to the VFG Industrial hangar

Added new splash screens when initially logging into the game

Balance/Tweaks

Gameplay
* Battle Royale and Squadron Battle have had their maximum player count increased to 16

Updated how ships calculate their mass when in the hangar

Points that are earned for doing damage to ship hulls has been adjusted due to the changes in ship health
Tweaked REC rewards due to changed in ship score values
Increased amount of REC rewarded from Capture the Core to better incentivize the game mode
Rebalanced Vanduul Swarm to be in line with desired difficulty due to the balance changes made to ships
** Vanduul are much more aggressive and will keep the player under pressure

Vanduul are more than likely going to tail you when they can

Speed for all types of Vanduul have been reduced to prevent them flying away from the player as quick

The difficulty of the first boss on wave 3 has been reduced

Ships
* Boost consumption has been rebalanced so that it involves more decision making for when to use it and involves less attrition

300-series hull health increased x2

Aurora hull health increased x3

Aurora top speed increased to 175

Avenger hull health increased x2

Avenger wings upsized from size 1 to size 2

Gladiator hull health increased x2

Gladiator adjusted to drift more when turning so that it handles appropriately for its size and role.

Gladius hull health increased x2

Hornet family hull health increased x2

Hornet rotational velocity increased

Hornet rotational acceleration decreased (not as much as the first PTU build)

Tightened up Hornet lateral strafe

M50 hull health increased x3

Mustang hull health increased x3

Restricted missile hardpoint sizes from size 1-3 to size 3 only to restrict possible missile racks on the Hornet Series